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Not saying we should get Loeffler, but their situation depth-wise is as bad as it is here at some key positions on offense. They've had a lot of injuries at RB, graduated some WR's and Logan Thomas has regressed this year, making a lot of careless mistakes, worse than what Gardner's been doing.

I do think there are better candidates than him. I think he'd be like a DeBord or a more innovative version of Borges, with better QB coaching, too. And that may be just fine for many people.

I think middle-schoolers doing organized conditioning and the pressure coaches face may be a bit more uncommon outside of the South, but year-round conditioning certainly is not. I think in parts of the South, you do see smaller programs emulate larger-schools more often, but something like year-round conditioning, formal and informal, has been around for a while pretty much everywhere.

Look at CRex's post below. It's not so simple as looking at height and weight. Denard has strong legs, but he has relatively long legs and a high waist compared to a lot of RB's. That's part of the reason he runs high and it also makes you susceptible to lower body injuries as time goes on. It's not just height and weight, it's his build/proportions and his running style. He also doesn't have a particularly large neck or trap muscles like some of these other runningbacks, either. Denard is a little smaller than Michael Vick, and even though he plays QB, you can see that he's not a big guy and he's going up against linemen and LB'ers on a normal basis and it's taken its toll.

I agree. You can point to guys like Chris Johnson all you want, but the fact is that he's not the norm. If you run a 4.2 and has had sick numbers at RB through high school and college, than yes, his size is not as much of a factor. But, most RB's don't have Chris Johnson's build, who is pretty thickly built himself if you see him in person. I remember thinking Clinton Portis was on the small side, and while that may have been true, he had more of a RB build.

The reason he's projected to be a WR is partly due to what other QB's have done, Denard's build, injury history, and his upside. I understand Denard was successful running the ball between the tackles, but I don't know why people are so quick to judge Denard at WR when he hasn't been playing the position very long. Whether he goes to RB or WR, he will have to learn a lot of new skills. Let the guy continue to learn and develop. Teams will probably give him some handoffs, but if he wants to grow and "own" a position, it's probably going to be as a slot WR.

Kinda OT, but Denard is a guy who I could see blowing up in some capacity in the CFL, just sayin'.

A lot of people acknowledge that he can be a good runningback for all the reasons you mention, but a lot of people are thinking from a longevity perspective as well. I think a lot of people look at his build and at what other QB's have done and say that WR is the best spot, but we've seen that he has great running skills besides being fast that would make him a potential weapon in the running game.

But, there should be caution for him at RB as well, not just for durability issue, but because runningback is simply a different position, even from the running perspective. If we're going to be nit-picky, Denard does have a tendency to dance at times. His skills at RB were best observed, IMO, in the inside running game, but I do question whether he'd be an effective off-tackle runner. I think he could be effective as a zone runner, but who knows.Either way, I think he has runningback skills, but people are concerned about his longevity.

A lot of that can be alleviated with better route running skills. Part of it is muscle memory as well. He still looks to be relatively upright with his weight a bit far back away from his feet but I think as he learns how to run these routes, he will fix this. Maybe after the catch when he's reacting more, as he did as a QB, he regresses and stumbles, but I expect him to run much cleaner routes at least.

I don't think he gets to that level, either. Harvin was such a dynamic athlete in high school, especially at wide receiver, it wasn't surprising to see him pick up full-time WR so quickly. I was actually more impressed with the way he was used at Florida. But, I agree that there are certain things that Harvin has been used to at least practicing for going on 10 years now that Denard will have to pick up some of before he's anything like the natural WR that Harvin is.

I think Harvin is a best-case scenario. Denard is similar in that he will probably get some snaps in some sort of wild-cat/option scenario or in a jet sweep or just something out of the backfield. But, Harvin's been a receiver for a while and he just has those instincts that may be difficult for Denard to pick up. I just hope that he can get as healthy as he can as soon as possible. He's a guy who could be very effective in the right situation, but he could just as easily be wasted, IMO.

I think it has peaked as well. I think the novelty of the BCS has kind of worn off and although the playoff will breath new life into the sport, I think it'll be short-lived. I think a lot of the interest has also aligned with the increased interest in all levels of football, recruiting, and gambling. It seems like we may have peaked in a number of these areas, and if it hasn't peaked, than perhaps the rate of growth of interest has peaked and we may be plateauing soon.

I think a new technological/media product will have to emerge if things are to continue on the path we've seen in the past decade and a half or so.

I think Turgeon is a very good coach and they're on a positive trajectory. As for why we can't pack a basketball stadium, you can ask Maryland about their abysmal football attendance. Basketball is just a bigger deal there and really the main major sport that they've had any consistent success at recently. If they recruit the area better, they will be a very dangerous team in the Big Ten and at minimum, they'll be in the top half of the Big Ten for a while.

Maryland is also below the Mason-Dixon line. And since we obsess about media markets when talking about conference expansion, Woodbridge, VA is in the DC market just like the homes of people like Countess, Furman, and countless others who've either been on the team or who've we've recruited.

The only reason why this nuance is brought up is because people see "VA" next to his name and all of a sudden he's a longshot Southern recruit when the reality is that he's a Mid-Atlantic recruit in the same market that we, OSU, PSU and others have had success recruiting.

I'm doubtful about Denard's prospects at the next level, but I actually think playing nickel or something might not be a bad idea. We don't know how well he can catch, although perhaps playing slot and catching some drags and outs would be feasible. But, Denard is strong and tough and doesn't shy away from contact. I think returning kicks will be his most likely landing spot, I could see the attraction to the idea of him playing corner, in addition to wide receiver. He could probably take snaps as a wild cat or at runningback, but he'd probably transition to WR over time for a number of reasons, health being an important one.

I went to Michigan and UVA and I'm not saying that UVA would be a perfect fit, especially not culturally. I think a lot of flagship universities with high-level academics/research and good/decent sports in very nice college towns could fit in the Big Ten. And the fact that UVA has a lot of East Coasters, like a few Big Ten schools and is located in the Mid-Atlantic helps given the recent expansions. I do disagree with a number of the characterizations you made about UVA and its environs, but if you do make those characterizations about UVA, you could also make them about Penn St., Maryland, and Rutgers to a similar extent. The southern gentleman mentality you mention is probably the most significant differentiating quality between UVA and Big Ten schools.

I went to high school in Fairfax County, Virginia and it was funny how when I went to UM, I was seen as a southerner, in the pejorative sense, more than anything else and my buddy who's from Montgomery County, MD was seen as a cool East Coaster, so ignorance and geographical stereotypes are alive and well in Big Ten country as well.

Stevie Brown looked like a beast when he first came to Michigan. He had a solid senior season, but he made a number of great plays on special teams early on during his Michigan career. He also seems like an overall good guy. I'm glad to see him putting together this kind of season.

What you say is true, but the political boundary between the states actually is significant. Northern Virginia was basically a backwater while Suburban Maryland was the premier suburb of Washington DC decades ago. Now, Northern Virginia has come into its own and has become more significant than Suburban Maryland economically an and is just as livable for the most part, which pisses off longtime residents and economic development officials/politicians in Maryland. And even though Maryland had slaves, being a part of the Union and being less politically and culturally conservative has always been something that Maryland has boasted about. Even if NoVa is different, it's still tied to Richmond.

I agree about Charlottesville and UVA. I don't think it's more cosmopolitan than Ann Arbor, but I think it'd fit in to the Big Ten pretty easily.

He may be underappreciated from the standpoint that a lot of people made Burke seem worse than he was when he was debating going pro after last season. It was good that he came back, but he was great towards the stretch last season and he only helped himself in camps during the offseason, which is what I think he would have done had he declared after last season. His size isn't ideal, but people seemed to underrate how skilled he was. Even some analysts didn't see it.

So, I'm glad he came back but it was clear after last season that some people underappreciated him. Not now, though.

Please stop repeating this myth. UVA and VT have been together for less than ten years. As long has VT doesn't remain in a dumpster-fire of a conference, than the legislature is not going to obstruct things. There are certain circumstances present in the instance where the legislature got involved.

Is it common for the ACL to be injured along with the patella? I ruptured my patella tendon and am rehabbing it, but there's an issue of buckling and lack of stability that I fear may be ACL-related. Along with the contact involved with the injury, chronic patellar tendonitis was a big contributing factor for me. I know it's different from a dislocation, but it's somewhat related still. Thanks for this post, though.

Utah is a flagship school, not bad academically, has decent sports, is located in a fast growing and economically well-off state, and fits the geography. I don't think it's correct to say that no one say Utah going to the Pac-12.

I dunno how it affects it, but Michigan lacrosse is on the upward trajectory either way. Michigan is a well-known brand in lacrosse-rich areas and the sport has become more popular in the midwest. I think having matchups with Maryland and having games available on the BTN will definitely help.

I agree. It is a smart choice from an athletics perspective. And, for the basketball-oriented programs in the conference, I'm sure they were less reluctant about this. When we talked Big Ten expansion, I'd always thought that while Louisville wouldn't be a target for us, it would be a good get for another BCS conference, whether it's the Big 12, SEC, or ACC, which I thought was the least likely, although that was before Pitt and 'Cuse joined.